Shifting Gears

24. Takeout and Talks

This was going to be harder than I thought.

For starters, I was weirdly happy heading to the track. This didn't go unnoticed by my brother, who questioned me relentlessly on what I was so cheery about. That succeeded in putting me back in a bad mood, though.

That morning before the practice, I had been walking by Greyson's trailer, hoping maybe he'd be nearby. I saw Champ, and stopped and bent down to scratch his ears for an alibi, but my eyes were scanning.

"Where's your owner, bud?" I asked the dog quietly. He whined back, and I just sighed.

I continued walking toward the grandstands where Clay, Reid, and Audrey were sitting. Clay liked watching the other races he wasn't a part of when he could, to analyze different racers and find weaknesses. I knew he hadn't been planning on watching any today, but then he saw that Greyson was in one, and randomly changed his mind.

When I was halfway there, I heard a bike ride up behind me, the deep thrum of their engine slowing as they neared me.

I glanced to my side, squinting in the sunlight.

"Did I see a pretty lady trying to steal my dog?"

I smirked at the racer, whose one hand was holding his helmet and goggles against his thigh, the other casually guiding the handlebars. I responded, "Must've been mistaken."

Greyson cocked his head, sun glinting in his chocolate mess of hair. "Ah, so the pretty lady was just there to look for a handsome man."

"Still mistaken."

"Sad. Because this handsome man has been been looking for his pretty lady."

I chucked, shaking my head while I walked.

"Are you going to cheer me on, Lawson?"

"Absolutely not. I'm a Clay Lawson girl."

In the corner of my eye I saw Greyson's lips curve, his green eyes crinkling. "I thought we already established you're something else now."

I raised an eyebrow. "Did we? I don't remember officially establishing anything."

"Hm. Still need to work out the terms, then. Stop by my trailer later? I think we could negotiate something."

A smile slipped through onto my face. "The first term was that we were going to keep this secret, so you trailing me like this is not helping."

"I think it's your happy smile that's giving this one away."

I bit the inside of my mouth, attempting to glare at his cheeky lopsided grin before he revved, taking off down the road toward the track. I shook my head toward his back, then continued on toward the stands.

I barely had time to wipe it off my face before Clay saw me.

He nodded at me, then kept stuffing his face with a burger he had swiped from the Shop.

Audrey, however, wasn't so easily fooled. She arched an eyebrow from her seat next to my brother. I bit back a smile, settling next to Reid in front of them.

The competition had been getting more and more popular, and the stands had become more full, even for practices. The fourth race tomorrow was supposed to reach peak attendance records. I knew the final race a little over a month from now would break those records. People from all around wanted to come see.

I watched even now as people approached Clay as he sat in the stands with me—other racers eager for a chance to get some tips, kids who beamed up at their role model as Clay ruffled their hair, even a petite blonde woman who looked like a reporter, holding her phone and a notepad out as she tried to ask Clay some questions. He didn't pay her much attention, though, he was busy talking with some fans who were boastfully assuring him that they were on his side.